Music Industry Terms

Okay, so I feel I need to define some terms for the reader's out there. I am just going to list them out.

Band: A group of two or more musicians who perform instrumental or vocal music.
Solo artist: A musician who usually performs alone.
Musician: A musician is a person who writes, performs, or makes music.

LP (long-playing record): Ten to fifteen songs.
EP (extended play): Three to seven songs.
Album/record: A collection of related audio or music tracks distributed to the public.

Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) sales certifications:

• 500,000 units: Gold album
• 1,000,000 units: Platinum album
• 2,000,000 or more units: Multi-Platinum album
• 10,000,000 units: Diamond album

Record label: Companies that manufacture and distribute recorded music and promote that music.

• Independent label (indie labels): Independent companies that do not have a corporate backing.
• Major label: Large corporations often owned by a parent company.

Currently the "big four" major labels are:

1. Sony Music Entertainment
2. EMI Group
3. Warner Music Group
4. Universal Music Group

A&R (Artists and Repertoire): A division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and the artistic and commercial development of the recording artist. It also acts as a liaison between the artist and the record label.

Press Release: A written or recorded communication directed at members of the news media for the purpose of announcing something claimed as having news value. In terms of the music industry, record labels put out press releases for new albums or tour plans from their artists.

This is all I have for now. If there are others I will add more to this list or make a new one.